All Was Well
by SorainaSkye
Summary: Slipping into normal life was surprisingly easy, all things considered. Cloud/Aerith.


This is sort of part of a story I plan to write, or at least what could be considered a sort-of epilogue for it. The basic premise is that Aerith is alive (was brought back to life) and how her and Cloud settle into their lives together.

This hasn't been beta-ed, due to the short length.

* * *

It was a small house.

Really, it couldn't be anything else. Considering the shape that Midgar was still in, almost everyone was living in small houses. And it wasn't as if they could afford anything bigger, anyway, especially not in the location they wanted.

It was not bright or yellow, the way she used to imagine her house would be when she was little. In fact, the house was a dark shade of blue that looked almost black, and it didn't have a trellis or an archway or a spiral staircase either.

It was a birthday present, a surprise from Cloud (with a little help from everyone else; being a delivery boy doesn't pay that much, nor does killing the occasional monster, though Yuffie continues to insist that they should have gotten some kind of reward for saving the world).

But it did have a small patch of dirt in the back, just big enough for a small garden. (Tifa told her later that Cloud had insisted on finding a house with that in mind).

It was a small house. The roof needed to be repaired and it got kind of cold at night, but Aerith loved it. It was theirs, and she practically knocked Cloud to the ground when she hugged him in thanks.

Cloud's never been that great at showing how he feels. He's shy and quiet, even moreso now than before. Aerith didn't know if it had been some part of his confused memories, but before he had often liked to pretend he was some kind of tough, "macho" guy. Truthfully, Zack had never been like that either, so she really thought it was just another way he'd tried to hide his true feelings. With his friends, and especially with her, he doesn't have to worry about that anymore. The result is a young man who speaks rarely, fumbles a little when he does, and is easily embarrassed. He doesn't laugh very often either, but he smiles a lot more than he used to. He's not the type to kiss her in public (but she kisses him, so it doesn't make a difference) though he does hold her hand. And he has a habit of sitting close to her; not in a possessive way, but in a way that shows how much comfort he takes in her presence. And there are small gestures; leaning against her on the couch, the looks and smiles he sends her from across the room (sometimes there's still a look of wonder there, as if he can't believe she's really here), and without fail, he often brings her flowers. In private he's a little more affectionate; sometimes he will play with her hair or give her quick kisses, and in his sleep he's actually quite the snuggler. She says "I love you" more often, but he says it rather often too, especially in the small, sweet, silent, ways that she's come to recognize.

Buying her -them - the house was a huge gesture, and she loved him for it all the more.

Slipping into normal life was surprisingly easy, all things considered. She still sold flowers, but she actually spent most of her time working as a waitress and bartender at Tifa's place (Aerith can say, quite honestly, that Tifa has taught her to make excellent mixed drinks). Cloud still does his delivery service, but he'd been working on changing careers for something closer to home. He actually quite liked traveling, but he liked it best when Aerith was with him.

They bought groceries. They painted the inside of their house. He helped with the garden, and wasn't half bad at it. It turned out they were both decent cooks (she's better with desserts, though). And, in their spare time, they tried to help rebuild the world.

The SHINRA company seemed sincerely sorry. Aerith didn't know what to think about it. They'd hurt a lot of people, and they'd held her and her mother prisoner for a good portion of her childhood, but she trusted Reeve, and she knew that they were some of the only ones that actually had the resources to help people get back on their feet. And if they weren't sincere…well, her friends had defeated a tyrannical man once, and they could do it again.

In any case, Aerith was there to help in any way she could. The geostigma was gone, but a lot of people still succumbed to disease and poverty, so she did her best to heal them, whether it was with magic or just rolling bandages. Cloud was often right there with her, taking directions from her with an ease that made her think of his days as a soldier.

It wasn't perfect. There were riots. Threats of war. Very real monsters, and ones that looked like everyday people. She could still hear the cries of the planet, still so worn and hurt after all the abuse.

But she had her friends, and she had Cloud. She was working toward a better future, and she was more than willing to fight and heal whatever she had to to get there.

In the garden, her flowers were blooming.

She ran excitedly into the house, and brought Cloud outside to see. He admired them, and their hands entwined, and when she kissed him, she could feel him smiling.

_You see? Everything's all right._


End file.
